Tennessee Williams in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof depicts a family beset by conflicts based on sex, money, inheritance, and ties to the land. Different factions in the family vie for attention out of fear of losing money once the patriarch dies. Money is a major source of family conflict in this play, though there are other conflicts as well. In this play, the conflicts extend into the past and to earlier sins committed by the older members of the family. This suggests several divisions or opposing forces which can be identified in the play youth versus old age, modernity versus tradition, change versus the status quo, and tensions tearing the family apart versus those keeping the family together. The plot develops around these forces, with different characters representing or supporting different forces in their behavior, the way Big Daddy represents tradition while the younger generation represents change. This contrast is heightened in terms of the theme of inheritance and the decision as to who will control the land and continue the family traditions.